40-year Mystery Behind Strange Van Halen "Dinosaur Photos" Finally Solved to ROAR-some Results
So, we don't post too much about 80's Metal, Hair Metal, or just Metal in general... but we do very much enjoy loud, fast, and generally hard music, as well. Van Halen (VH) have always been one of those bands that holds a special place in our heart; both David Lee Roth & Sammy Hagar had goofy, charaismatic personalities during their tenures with VH, but are, arguably, two of the best frontmen to ever hold a mic! Not to mention the sheer artistic ability and musical innovation of guitarist Eddie Van Halen, his brother/drummer Alex Van Halen, long-time bassist Michael Anothony, and later, bassist Wolfgang "Wolfie" Van Halen, who was, actually Eddie's own son. Van Halen have countless great albums that play extremely well from front-to-back, but one of our personal favorites is their 1978 self-titled debut.
It includes an endless amount of hits, such as "Runnin' with The Devil," "Eruption," "You Really Got Me" (a Kinks cover,) "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love," "Jamie's Cryin,'" "Atomic Punk," and fan favorite "Ice Cream Man." Through two different lead singers, who ended up continually returning and exiting like a revolving door, over the course of the band's 46-year career, Van Halen scored hit after hit and were loved by swooning fans across the world. Unfortunately, Eddie Van Halen passed away in 2020 following a long bout with diverticulitis, throat cancer, lung cancer, and a history of stokes. However, for the better part of Van Halen's four-plus-decade career in the spotlight, there was one secret that evaded their fans for nearly 40 years!
For years now, strange images of VH's Van Halen to 1984-era line-up frolicking around what appeared to be a... dinosaur park?!!!??! It looked to all take place on the set of a music video, which no one ever seemed to have seen and images were published as part of an issue of popular Van Halen fan 'zine, The Inside, along with the ROAR-ing headline, "Sunday afternoon in Jurassic Park?" Just about a week or so ago, not long after a new artcile was published on a site called Lethal Amounts, the mystery of Van Halen's dinosaur photos/videos has finally been revealed: Van Halen were at The Prehistoric Park of Rivolta D'Adda near MIlan, Italy during their 1981-82 World/European Tour in support of then-recently released album, Fair Warning.
"These videos aired on Italian State television, RAI 1, during a TV show called Happy Circus. Van Halen Italia Fan Club found those video clips and shares them with fans all over the world," shares YouTube user and fateful uploader Kosmo VanHalenItalia. Kosmo uploaded a clip on June 6th entitled "Van Halen So This Is Love @ Happy Circus TV show 01 Jan 1982 that showcases David Lee Roth lip-synching and performing to "So This Is Love?" from Fair Warning. It's truly something to experience and definitely bodes well alongside 60 Second Docs' Lost Weekend: Partying with Van Halen. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear as though we'll be getting any more Van Halen reunions, as thy officially broke up upon Eddie's passing. However, Wolfgang Van Halen recently launched a project of his own, Mammoth Wolfgang Van Halen or simply, Mammoth WVH. Mammoth WVH's self-titled debut is now available on EX1 Records.